TheravadaBuddhism is de rewigion of 70.2% of de popuwation of Sri Lanka.[3] The iswand has been a center of Buddhist schowarship and wearning since de introduction of Buddhism in de dird century BCE producing eminent schowars such as Buddhaghosa and preserving de vast Pāwi Canon. Throughout most of its history, Sri Lankan kings have pwayed a major rowe in de maintenance and revivaw of de Buddhist institutions of de iswand. During de 19f century, a modern Buddhist revivaw took pwace on de iswand which promoted Buddhist education and wearning. There are around 6,000 Buddhist monasteries on Sri Lanka wif approximatewy 15,000 monks.[4]

According to traditionaw Sri Lankan chronicwes such as de Dipavamsa, Buddhism was introduced into Sri Lanka in de dird century BCE after de Third Buddhist counciw by Arhanfà Mahinda dero, son of Emperor Ashoka, during de reign of Devanampiya Tissa of Anuradhapura. After de arrivaw of Arahanda Mahinda, he invited his sister Sangamitta Thera to bring a sapwing of de Bodhi Tree (where Buddha was enwightened) to Sri Lanka and de first Buddhist monastery, monuments and monk were introduced. Among dese, de Isurumuniya and de Vessagiriya remain important centers of worship. He is awso credited wif de construction of de Padamaka cetiya, de Jambukowa vihāra and de Hatfāwhaka vihāra and de refectory. The Pawi Canon, having previouswy been preserved as an oraw tradition, was first converted into writing in Sri Lanka around 30 BCE. Awong wif Mahinda came his sibwing Sanghamitra. She gave de nun ordinace to women devotees.

As a resuwt of de work of Buddhaghosa and oder compiwers such as Dhammapawa, Sri Lanka devewoped a strong tradition of written textuaw transmission of de Pawi Canon, uh-hah-hah-hah. The compiwation of de Atdakada (commentaries) awong wif de Nikāyas and oder Pitakas were committed to writing for de first time in de Awuvihare Rock Tempwe during de first century BCE.[4] Buddhist witerature in Sinhawese awso drived and by 410, Sri Lankan monks travewed widewy droughout India and Asia introducing deir works.

Over much of de earwy history of Buddhism in Sri Lanka, dree subdivisions of Theravāda existed in Sri Lanka, consisting of de monks of de dree mahaviharas :- Anuradhapura Maha Viharaya, Abhayagiri vihāra and Jetavanaramaya.[6] The Anuradhapura Maha Viharaya was de first tradition to be estabwished whiwe Abhayagiri vihāra and Jetavanaramaya were estabwished by monks who had broken away from de Maha Viharaya tradition, uh-hah-hah-hah.[6] According to A.K. Warder, de Indian Mahīśāsaka estabwished itsewf in Sri Lanka awongside de Theravadas into which dey were water absorbed.[6] Nordern regions of Sri Lanka awso seem to have been ceded to sects from India at certain times.[6]

In de 7f century, Xuanzang wrote of two major divisions of Theravada Buddhism in Sri Lanka, referring to de Abhayagiri tradition as de "Mahayana Sdaviras" and de Mahāvihāra tradition as de "Hinayana Sdaviras."[7] Abhayagiri appears to have been a center for Mahayana and Vajrayana teachings;[8] Xuanzang writes, "The Mahāvihāravāsins reject de Mahāyāna and practice de Hīnayāna, whiwe de Abhayagirivihāravāsins study bof Hīnayāna and Mahāyāna teachings and propagate de Tripiṭaka.[9]

In de 8f century, bof Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism were being practiced in Sri Lanka and two Indian monks responsibwe for propagating Vajrayana Buddhism in China, Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra, visited de iswand during dis time.[10]

In Pawi commentaries, terms used for de Mahayanins of Abhayagiri were Vaituwya, Vaipuwya and Vaidawya. According to HR Perera, de Theravada commentaries considered dem hereticaw and deir doctrines incwuded:

They hewd de view dat de Buddha, having been born in de Tusita heaven, wived dere and never came down to earf and it was onwy a created form dat appeared among men, uh-hah-hah-hah. This created form and Ānanda, who wearned from it, preached de doctrine. They awso hewd dat noding whatever given to de Order bears fruit, for de Sangha, which in de uwtimate sense of de term meant onwy de paf and fruitions, does not accept anyding. According to dem any human pair may enter upon sexuaw intercourse by mutuaw consent.[4]

The 7f century piwgrim Xuanzang first wearned for severaw years at Nawanda and den intended to go to Sri Lanka to seek out furder instruction, uh-hah-hah-hah. However, after meeting Sri Lankan monks in de Chowa capitaw who were refugees, he decided not to visit:

At de time of Hiuen Tsang's visit de capitaw was visited by 300 Bhikshus of Ceywon who had weft de iswand in conseqwence of famine and revowution dere. On de piwgrim tewwing dem of his intended visit to Ceywon for instruction, dey towd him dat dere were no Bredren dere superior to dem. Then de piwgrim discussed some Yoga texts wif dem and found dat deir expwanations couwd not excew dose given to him by Śīwabhadra at Nāwandā.[13]

From de 5f century to de ewevenf century, de iswand of Sri Lanka saw continuous warfare between wocaw kings, pretenders and foreign invaders such as de Souf Indian Chowa and Pandyan dynasties. This warfare saw de sacking of viharas and made de situation difficuwt for Buddhism.[4] In 1070, Vijayabahu I of Powonnaruwa conqwered de iswand and set about repairing de monasteries. The state of Sri Lankan Buddhism was so bad at dis time dat he couwd not find five bhikkhus in de whowe iswand to ordain more monks and restore de monastic tradition; derefore, he sent an embassy to Burma, which sent back severaw eminent ewders wif Buddhist texts.[4] The king oversaw de ordination of dousands of monks. The royaw reforming of Sri Lankan Buddhism continued under Parakramabahu I (c. 1153), who restored many stupas and monasteries. During dis period, Sri Lankan Buddhist witerature drived once again and de dree greats writers Mahākassapa Thera of Dimbuwagawa Raja Maha Vihara, Moggawwana Thera and Sāriputta Thera compiwed Pawi commentaries and sub-commentaries. Parakramabahu II of Dambadeniya (from c. 1236) was a wearned king and wrote severaw Sinhawese Buddhist texts.

Before de 12f century, more ruwers of Sri Lanka gave support and patronage to de Abhayagiris and travewers such as Faxian saw de Abhayagiris as de main Buddhist tradition in Sri Lanka.[14][15] The trend of Abhayagiri being de dominant sect changed in de 12f century, when de Maha Viharaya gained de powiticaw support of Parakramabahu I (1153–1186), who compwetewy abowished de Abhayagiri and Jetavanaya traditions.[16][17] The monks of dese two traditions were den defrocked and given de choice of eider returning to de waity permanentwy or attempting reordination under de Maha Viharaya tradition as sāmaṇeras.[17][18] Parakkamabāhu awso appointed a saṅgharāja "King of de Sangha," a monk who wouwd preside over de Sangha and its ordinations in Sri Lanka wif de assistance of two deputies.[19]

Veneration of Avawokiteśvara has continued to de present day in Sri Lanka, where he is cawwed Nāda.[20] In more recent times, some western-educated Theravādins have attempted to identify Nāda wif Maitreya. However, traditions and basic iconography, incwuding an image of Amitābha on his crown, identify Nāda as Avawokiteśvara.[21]

It is cwear from scuwpturaw evidence awone dat de Mahāyāna was fairwy widespread droughout [Sri Lanka], awdough de modern account of de history of Buddhism on de iswand presents an unbroken and pure wineage of Theravāda. (One can onwy assume dat simiwar trends were transmitted to oder parts of Soudeast Asia wif Sri Lankan ordination wineages.) Rewics of an extensive cuwt of Avawokiteśvara can be seen in de present-day figure of Nāda.[22]

Earwy reports by Europeans from de 18f century describe de Buddhist monks of Sri Lanka as being engaged in de recitation of mantras and using Buddhist prayer beads for counting as practiced in Mahayana Buddhism.[22]

Sri Lanka has de wongest continuous history of Buddhism of any Buddhist nation, wif de Sangha having existed in a wargewy unbroken wineage since its introduction in de 3rd century BCE. During periods of decwine, de Sri Lankan monastic wineage was revived drough contact wif Burma and Thaiwand.

From de 16f century onwards, missionaries and Portuguese, Dutch and British cowonizers of Sri Lanka have attempted to convert de wocaw popuwation to Christianity. The wars wif de Portuguese and deir awwies weakened de Sangha. In 1592, Vimawadharmasuriya I of Kandy sought aid from Burma in order to ordain Buddhist monks on de iswand as dere was hardwy a singwe properwy ordained monk weft.[4] From 1612 to 1658, de Dutch and de Portuguese fought over de iswand wif de Sinhawese caught in de middwe, de Dutch won and occupied de maritime sections of de iswand dat had been occupied by de Portuguese untiw 1796 when dey surrendered deir territories to de British. The Dutch were wess zeawous dan de Portuguese in deir rewigious prosewytizing dough dey stiww discriminated against Buddhists which were not awwowed to register wif de wocaw audorities derefore many Sinhawese pretended to be Protestant.[4] During dis period many rewigiouswy incwined Sinhawese ruwers of de interior such as Vira Narendra Sinha of Kandy (1706-1739) and Sri Vijaya Rajasinha of Kandy (1739-1747) continued to patronize Buddhism, restoring tempwes and monasteries.

In de mid 18f century de higher ordination of Buddhist monks known as upasampada, which was defunct at de time, was revived wif de hewp of Thai Buddhist monks on de initiatives taken by Wewiwita Sri Saranankara Thero during de reign of king Kirdi Sri Rajasinghe.[23]

In 1813 de American Ceywon Mission (Protestant) was estabwished in Jaffna. In 1815 a British army captured Kandy and deposed de Sinhawese king ending a wine of Buddhist kings wasting 2301 years, dey retained Sri Lanka untiw 1948. Like de Dutch, de British refused to register unbaptized infants and to accept non-Christian marriages. They awso awways preferred Christians in government administration, uh-hah-hah-hah. The British awso supported various Christian missionary groups who estabwished schoows on de iswand. Education in dese schoows (which disparaged Buddhism) were a reqwirement for government office. Missionaries awso wrote tracts in Sinhawese attacking Buddhism and promoting Christianity[4]

In de 19f century, a nationaw Buddhist movement began as a response to Christian prosewytizing, and was empowered by de resuwts of de Panadura debate between Christian priests and Buddhist monks such as Migettuwatte Gunananda Thera and Hikkaduwe Sri Sumangawa Thera which was widewy seen as a victory for de Buddhists.[24] In 1880 Henry Steew Owcott arrived in Sri Lanka wif Madame Bwavatsky of de Theosophicaw Society; he had been inspired when he read about de Panadura debate and after wearning about Buddhism converted to de rewigion, uh-hah-hah-hah. Owcott and de Sinhawese Buddhist weaders estabwished de Buddhist Theosophicaw Society in 1880, wif de goaw of estabwishing Buddhist schoows (dere were onwy dree at de time, by 1940, dere were 429 Buddhist schoows on de iswand).[4] The society awso had its own pubwications to promote Buddhism; de Sinhawese newspaper, Sarasavisandarasa, and its Engwish counterpart, The Buddhist. As a resuwt of deir efforts, Vesak became a pubwic howiday, Buddhist registrars of marriage were awwowed, and interest in Buddhism increased. Anoder important figure in de revivaw is Anagarika Dharmapawa, initiawwy an interpreter for Owcott, who travewed around de iswand preaching and writing. After travewing to India, he estabwished de Maha Bodhi Society in 1891 whose goaw was to revive Buddhism in India, and restore de ancient Buddhist shrines at Bodh Gaya, Sarnaf and Kushinara.[25] His efforts saw de restoration of dese sites and a renewaw of interest in Buddhism among some Indians. The associations of de Buddhist revivaw awso contributed much to de pubwication of Buddhist texts, and promotion of Buddhist schowarship. Revivawist Buddhist schowars incwude Sir D. B. Jayatiwaka, F. R. Senanayake, Wawisinghe Harischandra and W. A. de Siwva.[4] Severaw Buddhist shrines were awso rebuiwt. Buddhist weaders were awso active in de movement for Sri Lankan independence. Since independence, Buddhism has continued to drive on de iswand.

The Buddhist revivaw awso resuwted in Sinhawa Buddhists carrying de torch of Buddhism and igniting it on foreign shores. Anagarika Dharmapawa and Asoka Weeraratna are two such weading pioneers among many oders. They pioneered de estabwishment of Buddhist Viharas in Europe. Anagarika founded de London Buddhist Vihara in 1926 whiwe Asoka Weeraratna opened a new chapter for de spread of Buddhism in Germany and Europe by estabwishing de Berwin Buddhist Vihara in Dr. Pauw Dahwke’s Das Buddhistische Haus in 1957 wif monks from Sri Lanka stationed on a wong-term footing to spread de Dhamma. This was de first Theravada Buddhist Vihara in Germany and continentaw Europe.

Since de Buddhist revivaw Sri Lanka has awso been an important center of Western Buddhist schowarship. One of de first western bhikkhus, Nyanatiwoka Mahadera studied in Sri Lanka, estabwished de Iswand Hermitage dere and ordained severaw western monks. Western monks who studied in de iswand hermitage such as Nanamowi Bhikkhu and Ven, uh-hah-hah-hah. Nyanaponika (who estabwished de Buddhist Pubwication Society awong wif Bhikkhu Bodhi) were responsibwe for many important transwations of de Pawi Canon and oder texts on Buddhism in Engwish and German, uh-hah-hah-hah.

A few years after de arrivaw of Mahinda, BhikkhuniSanghamitta, who is awso bewieved to be de daughter of Emperor Ashoka came to Sri Lanka. She started de first nun's order in Sri Lanka, but dis order of nuns died out in Sri Lanka in de 11f century.

Many women have been ordained in Sri Lanka since 1996.[26][fuww citation needed] In 1996 drough de efforts of Sakyadhita, an Internationaw Buddhist Women Association, Theravada bhikkhuni order was revived, when 11 Sri Lankan women received fuww ordination in Sarnaf, India, in a procedure hewd by Ven, uh-hah-hah-hah. Dodangoda Revata Mahādera and de wate Ven, uh-hah-hah-hah. Mapawagama Vipuwasāra Mahādera of de Mahābodhi Society in India wif assistance from monks and nuns of Korean Chogyo order.[27][28][29][30] Some bhikkhuni ordinations were carried out wif de assistance of nuns from de East Asian tradition;[31][fuww citation needed] oders were carried out by de Theravada monk's Order awone.[32][fuww citation needed] Since 2005, many ordination ceremonies for women have been organized by de head of de Dambuwwa chapter of de Siyam Nikaya in Sri Lanka.[32][fuww citation needed]